


Amedot Bomb 9

by E350tb



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Complete, F/F, Post-Episode: s05e04 Lars' Head
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-05
Updated: 2017-06-11
Packaged: 2018-11-09 05:41:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 8,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11098083
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/E350tb/pseuds/E350tb
Summary: Amethyst and Peridot's relationship continues to develop, both on and off the Earth.Series of one shots written for Amedot Bomb 9.





	1. #1: Flirting

**Author's Note:**

> Well, Amedot Bomb is in full swing again, and given the prompts, it looks like we're going to get some pretty good stuff out of it. Also some stuff from me.
> 
> I'm going to try to keep all of these in the same basic continuity. They're supposed to continue from the stories I wrote for the first six days of Amedot Bomb 8, but I don't think you need to read them to understand what's going on here.

**#1: Flirting**

To put it bluntly, Lars Barriga was not the most lucky person on Earth at this point in time.

Steven would tell him that it could be worse, and it probably could. Sure, he was stranded on a planet millions of light-years away from home, scurrying through dark, forgotten tunnels and avoiding the killer robots the planet's fascistic government had sent after him. Sure, he had literally _died_ and been resurrected as a florescent pink being he wasn't quite sure was human. But it could be worse - he could still be dead, for a start. And his experiences with his new friends, the so-called 'off-colour' gems, were certainly helping him grow as a person.

But there were a lot of things he could certainly live without, and one of those things was Steven bursting out of his hair without warning.

"Sorry Lars," Steven apologised as Lars pulled himself off the dusty ground.

"Would it kill you to warn-ah, don't worry about it," sighed Lars.

He climbed to his feet and realised that Steven hadn't come alone.

"The Homeworld Kindergartens...I heard rumours about them, but I never imagined they were still here..."

Peridot gazed around in awe at the walls of the Kindergarten, which seemed to stretch forever into the dark abyss above. Her expression seemed to shift between wonder and intimidation.

Next to her, Amethyst whistled, crossing her arms.

"If somebody jumped off the roof of this place," she said, "How long do you think it would be before they hit the ground?"

"Steven, what are they doing here?" demanded Lars, "They might freak out the..."

"Some visitors have arrived through Lars' head!"

The four 'off-colour' gems approached, taking in the sight of the new arrivals. Much to Lars' relief, they didn't seem to be too worried about these new gems, although Rhodonite looked a little wary. Peridot looked back at them - seeing Fluorite's massive form, she gulped and stepped back.

"Hi guys!" exclaimed Steven, "These are my friends from Earth, Amethyst and Peridot! Guys, this is Fluorite, Rhodonite, the Rutile Twins, Padparadscha and...well, you know Lars, Amethyst."

"'Sup," shrugged Amethyst, "New look suits you, donut boy."

"Uh...thanks?"

"Well," said Fluorite, speaking slowly and deliberately as she smiled warmly at the smaller gems, "If you're Steven's friends, I'm sure we'll get along just fine."

"I mean, I guess we will," Rhodonite added anxiously as she scratched the back of her head, "But, uh, why did you bring them here?"

Peridot shook her head, recovering from her initial shock and tucking her hands behind her back.

"Right now, the Crystal Gems are repairing a drop ship that should allow us to fly to Homeworld and rescue Steven's pink friend," she explained, "Naturally, I am leading this project..."

"I thought Pearl was leading the project?" interrupted Steven.

Peridot ignored him.

"...and I believe that we can use soil samples from this Kindergarten in order to build a navigational system that can find and reach Homeworld. We'll need to dig some samples up and take them back to Earth for a proper analysis."

"I love it when you talk dirty," said Amethyst, smirking.

"Yes, soil samples _are_ dirty," nodded Peridot, apparently missing the real meaning behind Amethyst's statement, "But we're going to have to make these sacrifices if we're going to save..."

She pointed to Lars.

"Lars," sighed Lars.

"Right," said Peridot.

She knelt down, grabbing a rock from the ground and carefully licking it. She winced.

"The level of soil toxicity here is...staggering," she said, shaking her head, "The amount of environmental destruction this Kindergarten must have created...it's _irresponsible_."

She turned to Steven.

"Steven, I'm gonna need my tools."

Steven nodded, handing Peridot a small plastic bucket and spade. She nodded and began to dig up the soil, slowly filling the bucket. As she did so, Amethyst turned to Fluorite, Rhodonite and Lars.

"So, fusions, huh?" she asked, "Pretty cool, man."

"Oh, uh, thanks!" replied Rhodonite, "Uh, we don't hear that very often around here. Homeworld doesn't like fusion unless it has a purpose."

"Do you fuse often on Earth?" asked Fluorite.

" _Fluorite!_ Isn't that a bit... _personal?_ " exclaimed Rhodonite.

"Nah, it's cool," shrugged Amethyst, "Yeah, I've fused a couple of times. Mostly it's been for fighting though."

She smirked.

"Although," she said, her voice raising in volume, "There _is_ someone I've been thinking of asking to fuse with for fun..."

"That's great! I hope they have a good time!" Peridot called back.

Amethyst chuckled.

"She's clueless," she whispered.

"Wait, hold up," said Lars, "What exactly is 'fusion?'"

"We'll tell you when you're older, kid," shrugged Amethyst.

Lars scowled and was about to reply when Peridot spoke up.

"Alright, samples are done - just one more thing I need to do!"

She handed her bucket to Steven and walked over to one of the Kindergarten holes, inspecting it carefully. Amethyst walked over, looking it over.

"This hole is different from the others," said Peridot, furrowing her brow.

"What do you mean?" asked Amethyst.

Peridot climbed into the hole, rubbing her hand along the rocky sides.

"This hole must have produced an _exceptional_ gem," she said, "It would have been strong and formidable in battle..."

She leaned forward, sniffing the rock-face.

"...scent would have been pleasing; I'm not sure how that helps in battle, but it's worth mentioning..."

She jumped out of the hole, regarding it from the outside once more.

"...and the shape tells us that the gem would have been unusually aesthetically pleasing; Steven, give me a human word for that."

"Pretty?" suggested Steven.

"Yeah, pretty," nodded Peridot, "I mean, that word is _subjective_ but..."

"Okay, I think we get it," began the left Rutile.

"...but why is it important?" asked the right Rutile.

"Well, if my knowledge as a Kindergartener is correct, and it _is_ ," said Peridot, "I believe that hole would have belonged to an Amethyst. And had the Kindergarteners running this place kept it in a little longer..."

She turned to face Amethyst, grinning and blushing at the same time.

"...I believe it might have been half as perfect as you, Amethyst!"

There was a long silence.

"Uh...that was good, right?" asked Peridot, "That...that's how you flirt, right?"

"You call _that_ flirting?!" exclaimed Lars.

"I..." Amethyst stammered, "...did you just...Peridot, you're not supposed to make a speech..."

She shook her head, shrugged and chuckled.

"Ah, what the heck," she said, "Nice one, Peri."

She pulled Peridot into a tight hug, blushing all the while.

"Steven," asked Lars, "Are they..."

"An item?" replied Steven, "Yeah, I reckon they are."

"They can't be an item," said the right Rutile.

"They're living gems," added the left Rutile.

"A Peridot and an Amethyst?" mused Rhodonite, "If anybody found out about that..."

"I think that's wonderful," said Fluorite, smiling, "Very good for them."

There was a brief silence.

"I've just had an incredible vision!" exclaimed Padparadscha, "The Peridot and the Amethyst are in some kind of relationship!"

"You don't say, Padparadscha," said Lars, absently rubbing her hair with his hand.

An image of Sadie flashed in his mind. He shook his head and reminded himself again that things could be worse.

But just as there were things he could do _without_ , there were certainly things he could do _with_...


	2. #2: First Kiss

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was a challenge, but in a good way.

**#2: First Kiss**

It was sunset in Beach City, and most of the people of the small town were heading home for the day. The sky was a brilliant red and was reflected strikingly in the darkening ocean. It was a beautiful evening all round, one that would make a person feel glad to be alive.

Amethyst sat at the table on the balcony of the beach house, eating fry bits as she looked out to sea. Across the table from her, Peridot was talking animatedly about her day, explaining the scientific process behind repairing the drop ship in great detail. Amethyst didn't really understand any of it, but talking about it made Peridot happy, and that was fine by her.

"...meaning that if our calculations are correct we _should_ be able to eliminate the need to stop and recharge the warp drive every few thousand light-years, which would accelerate travel time to..."

"You hear that?" asked Amethyst.

Peridot stopped talking.

The two gems could just about hear the sound of footsteps on the sand. Two voices, chattering animatedly about anime, drifted on the breeze. Recognising one of them, Amethyst sighed heavily.

"Okay, never mind, it's just Fry Boy or whatever his name is," she shrugged.

"Fry what now?" asked Peridot, standing up and looking over the railing towards the beach.

Ronaldo Fryman and his girlfriend, Jane, were walking along the beach and just passing the temple. As Peridot watched, they stopped, taking each other's hands.

"What are they doing?" demanded Peridot, "And what is that human's hair even supposed to look like?"

Ronaldo and Jane leaned into each other. Peridot squinted, scrutinising the pair closely, before finally deducting exactly what they were doing.

"Hey!" she shouted, cupping her hands over her mouth, "Do you mind?! We're trying to relax here! Go and fuse somewhere else!"

Ronaldo squealed and bolted, Jane running after him. Peridot shook her head and sat down, dusting her hands off as she did.

"You caught them making out?" chuckled Amethyst, "Heh, _awkward!_ Man, I wish I'd seen the look on his face..."

"What were they even doing?" asked Peridot, "What is with this strange... _facial sucking_ ritual that humans keep performing?"

Amethyst fought the urge to laugh.

"You mean kissing?" she replied.

"Yes, I believe that's what they called it on _Camp Pining Hearts_ ," nodded Peridot, "Usually in those illogical scenes with Paulette. But what exactly _is_ it?"

Amethyst rubbed the back of her hair.

"Geez, Peri, you never ask _easy_ questions, don't you?" she replied.

She mused on the question, biting her lip as she did.

"Okay, so...basically, when two humans are in love with each other, or think they're in love with each other, or think they could possibly be in love with each other, or when they're dr...anyway, it's sort of a sign of...what's the word..."

"Mutual companionship?" asked Peridot, "Demonstrating some kind of bond?"

"Yeah, I guess so," shrugged Amethyst.

"But _why?_ " said Peridot, "Why would they do it with their mouths? What does it..."

"Look, Peri, it's hard to explain," replied Amethyst.

Peridot stood up, clutching her hair.

"But I need to know!" she exclaimed, "I want to _understand_ these human things, Ames! I mean, this is _my_ world now, and I've gotta know..."

"Stand still for a minute."

Peridot stopped as Amethyst stood up.

"Amethyst," she said, blushing, "Are you...are you gonna..."

"Only if you want to, dude," replied Amethyst.

Peridot thought it over for a minute.

"Alright," she said.

Amethyst smiled, putting her hands around Peridot's shoulders.

"Okay, Peri," she said, closing her eyes, "Just follow my lead."

What followed was one of the most strange and unfamiliar things that Peridot had yet experienced on Earth.

For all the world, what was happening was a simple gesture - one that recognised as romantic, but simple nevertheless - but it created a string of emotions inside the small green gem. She was nervous and excited, scared yet comforted. For a few moments, her entire world seemed engulfed within Amethyst - the other gem's scent and taste, and in some unfathomable way her very essence seemed to blanket her like a peculiar and yet comforting veil.

And then it was over, and she found herself staring into Amethyst's eyes. There was a long silence.

"Look, if that wasn't okay," Amethyst said nervously, blushing as she spoke, "I-I totally get it, I just wanted..."

"No, it was okay," replied Peridot, "It was _good_. Thanks."

A small smile appeared on her face.

"I think I understand now," she said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not much to say here except that I hope you enjoyed the 'shot!


	3. #3: First Dance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You should be dancing, yeah.

**#3: First Dance**

The barn was rocked by a massive explosion, which would have been alarming had it not been the eighth time that had happened today.

A singed and dishevelled Peridot cursed loudly as she stumbled out of the cloud of smoke that had been Rocket Engine Attempt Seventeen, followed by Pearl, who had long since stopped pretending that they were going to make any progress that day and simply seemed mildly annoyed. From the picnic table nearby, Steven, Amethyst, Connie, Lapis and Greg watched as they walked over.

"It shouldn't be this hard to build a warp capable engine!" exclaimed Peridot, "If Earth's technological base wasn't so primitive, I... _gaaah!_ "

She looked angrily up at the late afternoon sky.

"If we still had that Ruby ship, this wouldn't be a problem!" she exclaimed, " _Curse you, Navy!_ "

"Wow, who knew rocket science was so _hard?_ " said Steven.

"Well, hopefully we make some more progress when Garnet gets back," sighed Pearl, "Just as long as she can find a partially intact engine near Centipeedle's ship..."

She was cut off as Garnet warped in. Although her face and posture showed no expression, she did appear to be partially on fire.

"Didn't go well?" said Amethyst.

"No," replied Garnet.

Greg stood up.

"Alright," he said, "We're not getting anything done today, and I think we're getting too much on edge. We need to find some way to cool off."

"I don't see how changing the temperature is supposed to help us," grunted Peridot.

"No, I mean, we need to loosen up," replied Greg, "Relax a little. Clear our heads. Maybe then we can come back to this fresh tomorrow."

"What do you have in mind?" asked Connie.

Greg scratched his chin.

"Well..."

* * *

About an hour later, Greg had parked his van on the beach outside the temple, and had just finished setting up his sound system. Peridot watched in confusion as he pulled out a cardboard box full of records, rifling through it for something to play.

"So...we're having a 'dance party'?" asked Peridot, "So is everybody going to fuse or something?"

Amethyst shrugged.

"Nah," she replied, "We're just letting off steam, y'know?"

"Oh, okay," nodded Peridot.

She cupped her hands over her mouth and turned towards Lapis, who was sitting on the sand reading a book Connie had loaned her.

" _Lapis! It's okay! You don't have to fuse with anybody, okay?!_ "

"...okay," Lapis replied, not looking up from her book.

Peridot gave her a thumbs up and turned back to Amethyst.

"So," she said, "I know a _little_ about dancing from what Steven has told me, but I'm not exactly..."

"Eh, don't worry about it," shrugged Amethyst, "It's not about being _good_ , man, it's about having _fun_. And sometimes annoying Pearl."

"Alright, I think I've got something!" called Greg, "I mean, it's a _bit_ seventies, but I think it's good enough..."

The opening bars of a song filled the air - it was different from a lot of the Earth music Peridot had heard before, with a fast, steady beat and an upbeat, synthesised rhythm. Amethyst whooped and began to dance to the rhythm.

Peridot looked apprehensively around, rubbing her arm. Steven and Connie were dancing together, as one might expect - so too were Pearl and Garnet. Greg was standing next to the sound system, dancing on his own but still clearly enjoying himself. Even Lapis was bobbing her head unconsciously.

In her head, Peridot began to contemplate the optimal way to dance. Was she supposed to dance on her own or find a partner? Were there any particular movements she would need to make? Realising that she was standing completely still and probably overanalysing the situation, she began to nervously shuffle in place in a vague facsimile of dancing.

"Hey, Peri, c'mere!"

Amethyst took Peridot's hands and grinned.

"Follow my lead, okay?" she said.

"Uh...alright," nodded Peridot.

Amethyst began to pull Peridot's arms back and forth to the beat while shaking her shoulders and hips. Hesitantly, Peridot mirrored her partner's movements, slowly but surely getting into the mood. Before too long, she was getting right into it.

"Pretty fun, huh?" said Amethyst.

"It's definitely appealing," nodded Peridot.

Amethyst chuckled, letting go of Peridot's hands and placing a hand on her hip, thrusting her body back and forth. Peridot blushed but continued to move to the beat, palpitations in her chest. She wondered if Amethyst intended...no, perhaps that was a bit far, surely.

In the end, it happened all at once.

Amethyst grabbed one of Peridot's hands, putting her other hand on her back. She whispered an instruction to her partner, and she fell backwards until Amethyst was all that supported her.

There was a brilliant flash of light, and Peridot wondered if this was it. She closed her eyes.

The song ended.

She opened her eyes to find herself looking up at Amethyst. The other gem looked somewhat confused.

"What?"

She stood up and stepped out of Amethyst's grip. She could see Sardonyx towering over her, laughing to herself and bowing theatrically towards Greg. She could see Stevonnie hugging themself and spinning around on the sand, Lapis looking on in slight confusion.

"But...but..." Peridot stammered.

Then it struck her.

She bolted, running for the beach house and refusing to look anybody else in the eye as she did. She ran up the steps and through the door, slamming it closed behind her.

"Far be it from me to intrude," said Sardonyx, "But is she alright?"

"Maybe she just wasn't comfortable with fusing," mused Greg.

Amethyst and Stevonnie glanced at each other.

"Or maybe she _can't_ ," said Stevonnie, furrowing their brow worriedly.

Amethyst looked back towards the beach house.

"Oh, _Peridot_ ," she said.

She began to walk towards the beach house.

* * *

Amethyst found Peridot curled up in the corner of the kitchen, her head buried in her arms. She was breathing heavily, and she didn't look up as the other gem entered the room.

"You wanna talk, Peridot?" Amethyst asked gently.

"I should have known," replied Peridot, "Peridots don't _need_ to fuse, just like we don't need to shapeshift. Of course Homeworld would make it so we couldn't do it."

"Peridot, that doesn't..."

"It _does_ matter!" shouted Peridot, looking up at Amethyst, "Look at me! I have no tech, I have no weapon, I can't shapeshift, I can't fuse - I'm _worthless_ , Amethyst! I can't...I want..."

She began to tear up.

"Why would you want a gem like me?" she asked.

Amethyst put a hand on her shoulder.

"Look, Peridot," she said, "I don't want a gem who can fuse, or a gem who can fight or whatever. I don't care about any of that. You know what I want?"

"What?" Peridot asked flatly.

"I want a gem whose eyes light up when they're talking about all the smart and dorky stuff that goes way over my head," replied Amethyst, "I want a gem who gets really excited about meep morps and Pumpkin and Camp Pining Hearts. I want a gem who blows up a rocket eight times in one day and still keeps trying."

Peridot looked Amethyst in the eyes. Amethyst smiled and wiped the tears from Peridot's cheek.

"I want you, man," she said, "Nobody else."

Peridot swallowed and nodded.

"I...I'm sorry, I shouldn't be doing this, I..."

"No, this is healthy, dude," replied Amethyst, "Let it all out."

There was a short silence, which was suddenly broken by Peridot hiccupping.

She embraced Amethyst, burying her head in Amethyst's shoulder and starting to cry. Amethyst hugged her back, gently patting her on the back. They stayed there for quite some time.

It wasn't quite the loosening-up that Greg had hoped for, that much was certain. But Peridot was able to get a lot off her chest that evening.

The next day, the rocket didn't even explode once.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First rule of rocket science - always assume that it will explode. I got that advice from Civilization V.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I drew something for this one, so that's a thing that happened.

**#4: I Love You**

The people of Beach City hadn't noticed when the Crystal Gems had started their rescue mission, but they certainly noticed when they came back. A half-wrecked, smoking, partially on fire drop ship crashing into the beach in front of the Big Donut did, after all, tend to attract more than a little attention.

As the people of Beach City crowded around, the gems and their allies slowly emerged - Steven and Connie first, helping a visibly battered but very much alive Lars over to the overjoyed arms of his parents and Sadie. Then Pearl, Garnet and Lapis followed, then Greg and the Off Colours, and then Blue Zircon, who was still wondering how she'd gotten involved in this mess.

Finally, while everybody else was distracted, Amethyst climbed out of the wreckage, cradling a small, green gem in her hands.

She walked over to Greg, who was talking to Vidalia about his new space adventure. Steven's father noticed her coming and quickly excused himself, turning to the purple gem.

"I'm gonna head back to the temple," Amethyst said flatly.

"You holding up okay?" asked Greg.

"Yeah, yeah, I just wanna be alone right now," replied Amethyst.

"Alright, you just let me know if you need anything," nodded Greg.

Amethyst nodded back and began to walk over to the temple.

"Hey!"

Amethyst turned around.

"She'll be alright, Amethyst," called Greg, "I promise."

Amethyst gave Greg a small smile and carried on her way.

* * *

The temple was quiet tonight. Lars had gone home with his parents and Sadie (and the Off Colours, which Amethyst imagined would be interesting), and Steven and Greg were taking Connie back home. Garnet, Pearl and Lapis were helping clean up the drop ship wreckage for Mayor Dewey, which left Amethyst almost alone in the small beach house. Lion slept peacefully on the mat, and Zircon was pacing nervously around the warp pad, clearly trying to clear her head. Amethyst would have asked her to go outside, but it started to rain quite heavily.

Amethyst lay on Steven's bed, listening to the rain on the roof. She held Peridot's gem close to her chest. She sighed heavily.

"So, how're you holding up, Zircs?" she asked.

Zircon froze, looking over to Amethyst.

"... _Zircs?_ "

"Yeah, short for Zircon," shrugged Amethyst, "How're you holding up?"

"Oh, uh, pretty well considering that I've been exiled from my Homeworld forever and now I'm in hiding with some rebels and also I might have found out something terrible the Diamonds did," she replied, clutching her head with one hand, "Yeah, pretty good."

"Uh huh, cool," nodded Amethyst, "You wouldn't happen to know how long it takes a Peridot to reform, huh?"

"No, not really," replied Zircon, "I didn't really deal with them much."

"Okay, thanks," sighed Amethyst, "You go back to pacing."

Amethyst went back to staring at the ceiling.

"Hey."

Amethyst glanced back to Zircon, who was nervously fidgeting with her hands.

"You...uh...you like her, don't you?" she asked.

"Yeah," sighed Amethyst, "I do."

"And does she know that?" asked Zircon, "Wait, no, sorry, that's too personal, I..."

Amethyst bit her lip as she thought over the question.

"She knows," she said, "But I don't think I've actually said..."

She sighed again.

Zircon glanced at the door.

"Look, I think you probably need space or something," she said, scratching the back of her head, "I...I'm going to see if they need help cleaning up your ship."

"Sure," nodded Amethyst.

Zircon nodded and walked briskly out the door, leaving Amethyst alone once more.

* * *

" _...hey Amethyst, it's Greg._ "

"Hey, what's up?" asked Amethyst.

She had put the phone on speaker and left it by the bed.

" _Look, the weather channel just put out a severe weather warning,_ " said Greg, " _It's probably too dangerous to drive home tonight, so me and Steven are bunking with the Maheswarens tonight. You gonna be okay over there?_ "

"Yeah, man, I'll be fine," nodded Amethyst, "You do what you've gotta do."

" _One more thing,_ " added Greg, " _I got a call from Sadie. Garnet and Pearl probably won't make it back - they're gonna try and settle those Homeworld gems in the old warehouse._ "

"Gotcha," said Amethyst.

" _Hang in there, Amethyst,_ " said Greg.

"You too, man."

Amethyst hung up the phone and gazed back up at the ceiling.

"I guess I'll just lay here on my own..."

* * *

Amethyst gazed out the window, watching the rain. She still held Peridot's gem close.

"So, Steven told me you used to be afraid of storms," she said, "And you know, that's kinda funny, 'cause when he was a little kid, he was _terrified_ of thunder."

She chuckled to herself.

"In the end, Greg had to give him the whole science talk about what it is," she continued, "But before that, you'd have to hug him right 'til it stopped raining. It was pretty funny."

She glanced down at Peridot's gem.

"Guess that's kinda what we're doing now," she said.

She rolled onto her back.

"For a minute there, y'know, I thought they'd shattered you," she continued, "Man, I wouldn't have taken _that_ well. That agate was _dang lucky..._ "

She closed her eyes.

"Can't wait 'til you come back, man," she said, "'Cause I reckon I've got something I wanna..."

She trailed off, opening her eyes.

Peridot's gem was lifting into the air, glowing brilliantly as it did so. Slowly, the light shifted into a familiar shape.

Peridot came into being, standing on the end of the bed. Her old Yellow Diamond-aligned outfit was gone - she wore a somewhat similar top, which was more rounded and had a large green star instead of the small yellow diamond. She wore what looked like a sleeveless, dark green jumpsuit underneath with lighter green boots, and dark green gloves over her hands. Over the jumpsuit, she had donned a light green skirt that was jagged at the bottom - clearly an inspiration taken from her friend.

She opened her eyes and looked at Amethyst.

"Uh...hi!" she said, "I guess I'm not dead?"

Amethyst whooped loudly and embraced Peridot, nearly knocking her to the floor.

"You're back!" she exclaimed, "Aw man, I was so worried, dude!"

"I...I didn't mean to scare you," replied Peridot, "Next time, I'll make more of an effort not to get poofed."

Amethyst laughed and nodded.

"Hey, Peridot?" she said.

"Yes?"

Amethyst smiled.

"I love you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am a hopeless romantic and I apologise.


	5. #5: Engagement

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not my best, but time was short today.

**#5: Engagement**

One morning Peridot decided she was going to get married.

Now, this is understandably considered a rather unorthodox way to begin your day, but there was method to Peridot's thinking. The previous night, during a marathon of _Camp Pining Hearts_ that had lasted so long that time and space had ceased to have meaning to the small green gem, she had found the concept of 'marriage' referenced in an episode (it was a season five one, so it wasn't that good, but that was beside the point). She remembered that Steven's uncle Andy had mentioned this (while berating Greg for not being 'technically married', whatever that meant) and decided to look it up.

As it turned out, marriage was a human custom that was apparently supposed to bond two people for life. Peridot guessed it was what they did instead of permafusing like Garnet did. And since she couldn't fuse, why not do what the humans did instead?

Except it was more complicated than she had expected. Before she did anything, she apparently needed a ring. This wasn't too hard, she thought - she'd been to a place with Steven that had many rings.

Unfortunately, there was a mild complication.

"Peridot, these aren't _rings_ , they're _donuts_ ," said Lars.

Peridot looked up at the pink teenager, tilting her head.

"They look like rings," she said, "They're round, they have a hole in them..."

"Yeah, but they're not..." Lars gesticulated frustratedly, "You can't use these as _engagement rings!_ "

"What's going on?"

Sadie emerged from the back room.

"She's trying to use a donut as an engagement ring," replied Lars.

"And why shouldn't I?" demanded Peridot, "These are clearly Amethyst's preferred kind of ringed object! I..."

"Wait, you want to propose?" asked Sadie, "To Amethyst?"

"Yeah, and I'm trying to tell her she can't..." began Lars.

"Lars, wait a minute," said Sadie, holding up her hand, "You've both got a point. Peridot, you can't just give her something off the menu, it's gotta be _special_."

"Special?" asked Peridot, tilting her head.

"Special," nodded Sadie, "Lars, close up shop. We've got some baking to do."

"I...uh...alright, I guess..."

* * *

"Okay, where are we going?"

Peridot led a blind-folded Amethyst down the beach. It was around sunset, and the sea breeze gently wafted over the sand.

"Don't worry, Ames, you'll find out soon," replied Peridot, trying and failing to suppress a grin.

Eventually, they reached their destination. Peridot eagerly removed Amethyst's blindfold.

They were at the Big Donut - one of the tables outside had been set up with a tablecloth and some candles. Lars stood next to it, looking quite uncomfortable in a waistcoat and tie. He held a covered tray.

"This...is not what I was expecting," said Amethyst.

"Do you like it?" asked Peridot, "We spent all day on this!"

" _We?_ " quizzed Amethyst as she and Peridot sat down, "You mean you spent the day with Lars and Sadie?"

"Yeah!" exclaimed Peridot, "I'm making 'friends!'"

"Uh, your meal or whatever," said Lars, putting down the tray in front of Amethyst. He uncovered it, revealing a purple roll underneath.

"Hey, is this that Ube thing Steven told me you did?" asked Amethyst.

"Yeah," replied Lars, scratching the back of his head, "It's...uh...it's not that great..."

"Aw, come on dude!" replied Amethyst, "Steven said it was great!"

Lars blushed but didn't reply.

The ube roll did not last long, even though Amethyst was the only one eating. For a while, the two sat and talked as the sun went down - Amethyst was still curious as to what was really going on, but Peridot would tell her nothing.

At last, Sadie emerged from the Big Donut, carrying a small paper bag. She handed it to Peridot with a small smile.

"Good luck," she whispered.

Peridot swallowed.

"Amethyst," she said, "I need to tell you something."

"Sure, go ahead," nodded Amethyst.

"I know I can't fuse," said Peridot, "And..."

"It's not a big deal, man."

"But it is," replied Peridot, "Fusion's how gems are supposed to show they care about each other...unless they're on Homeworld, I guess. And I can't...I can't show that to you in that way. So I came up with something different."

She got up.

"I've learnt a lot about the Earth since I got stranded here," she continued, "A lot of that is because of you. You showed me what living on Earth means; and I guess you helped me find out...well, _who I was._ "

She glanced down at the bag.

"I guess I found something on Earth that I can give back to you," she said, "And I know it's probably illogical and it's definitely not a substitute for my inability to fuse, but..."

She shrugged.

"...maybe it's just as good."

Amethyst tilted her head in confusion but said nothing.

"What I'm trying to say is..."

Peridot got down on one knee and held out the paper bag.

"...Amethyst, will you marry me?"

Amethyst's eyes widened as she reached into the paper bag.

She pulled out a small donut with a hole just big enough to fit around her finger. One half of the icing was purple, the other half green, and there was a slightly misshapen heart made out of white sprinkles where the colours met. It was warm to the touch - clearly it had been handmade.

"I..."

She turned the small donut over in her hand.

"Amethyst?" Peridot asked nervously.

Amethyst chuckled.

"Oh, Peri," she replied, "You _dork_."

"Have I done something wrong?" asked Peridot, her voice shaking.

"Nah, man," replied Amethyst.

She took her hands.

"Yeah," she nodded, smiling, "I'll marry you, Peri."

Peridot grinned and leapt forward, embracing Amethyst in a tight hug.

Quite suddenly, there was a loud sniffle from inside the Big Donut. Sadie glanced at the window - Lars was leaning against it, visibly beginning to weep.

"Oh, _Lars_ ," sighed Sadie, heading inside to comfort.

"It...it's so _beautiful_ ," Lars sobbed.

"Yeah, I know," nodded Sadie, "Let's get you a tissue or something..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, Lars.


	6. #6: Wedding

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's late, I know - I was working very hard to make it as right as I possibly could. Hope you enjoy!
> 
> Also it stars basically everyone.

**#6: Wedding**

It was a pleasant and sunny morning at the barn. It was also a very unusual one.

It had been three months since Peridot had proposed. She hadn't realised at the time, but preparing for a wedding was a long and difficult job, for a number of reasons. Thankfully, the other gems had been happy to help out, and finally the day had come.

It was most certainly not going to be traditional.

Garnet, Greg and Andy had just finished setting up chairs on the grass outside the barn. The wooden structure had been draped in white - if you didn't go too close, you could almost believe that it wasn't just covered in bed sheets Greg had found. There were also flowers, and those were actually real - Steven had gone out and picked them personally, returning with a wide variety of flowers and a wide variety of bug bites. An arch had been erected at the end of the isle, which had been made from junk found in Amethyst's room and spray-painted white.

Andy put down the chair and rubbed his hands together.

"Well, that's done!" he declared, "What time were we startin' again?"

"Twelve," replied Greg, "In about two hours."

"Alright," nodded Andy, "That's enough time to get you into that suit!"

"Do I have to?" asked Greg, "I mean, I'm sure the cherry sweater's gonna be fine..."

"Hey, we're gonna keep at least _one_ thing here traditional," replied Andy, "C'mon, no gettin' out of this..."

He dragged Greg away.

Garnet glanced down at the chairs, which had been labelled with the names of those invited. Two were marked 'Ruby' and 'Sapphire', with a third label in between reading 'Garnet'.

Garnet shrugged, sitting down in between the two chairs.

* * *

_The first problem had been finding somebody to actually marry Amethyst and Peridot._

_"It's going to have to be somebody with legal authority," mused Connie, sitting on the couch between Steven and Amethyst and tapping on a notepad with a pen, "Otherwise it won't be considered official by law."_

_"Mayor Dewey's got legal authority!" suggested Steven._

_"Not Mayor Dewey," said Amethyst bluntly._

_"Okay."_

_"We could ask my dad, but you don't really know him that well," said Connie, "Or maybe some kind of lawyer..."_

_The door opened, and Blue Zircon walked into the beach house._

_"'Sup Zircs," nodded Amethyst._

_"Amethyst."_

_"Yeah, maybe some kind of layw..."_

_Connie trailed off as the three of them stared at Zircon._

_"Um...is there a problem?" asked Zircon, nervously scratching her head._

* * *

Zircon paced behind Greg's van, anxiously fretting about what she needed to do. Steven and Connie stood next to her, trying to calm her down.

"I've only just started learning about human law!" exclaimed Zircon, "I'm not prepared for this!"

"You'll do fine," Steven reassured, "You've been doing really well learning from Mayor Dewey..."

"...learning from his _legal team_ ," corrected Zircon, "Dewey doesn't really know anything about law. Or mayoring."

"He tries," said Steven.

"All you've gotta do," said Connie, "Is read them their vows, ask if anybody objects and then declare them married. It'll be okay, Zircon, trust me."

"Vows, okay, got to do vows," nodded Zircon, "Uh...what am I saying again?"

"Here, repeat after me," replied Connie.

Zircon swallowed and nodded.

"Do you, insert name here..."

"Do you, insert name here..."

* * *

_"Well, Greg, you came to the right place!"_

_Barb Miller led Greg, Steven, Amethyst and Peridot into her house, leading them right to the kitchen table and sitting down._

_"I'm not an_ expert _, but I did a course on clothing design at college," she explained, "My memory's a_ little _patchy but I think I know a little about dressing a wedding."_

_"Why do we need 'dressing?'" asked Peridot._

_"It's an Earth thing," shrugged Greg._

_"Alright, let's see what we can come up with," said Barb, picking up a pen, "What'll you two be wearing - suit or dress?"_

_"Uh..."_

_Peridot scratched her chin before snapping her fingers._

_"Both," she decided, "Why not both?"_

_"Uh...really?" asked Greg, "I..."_

_"Sure, I think I can make that work," nodded Barb, starting to scribble a design on a scrap of paper._

_"I've got an idea!" said Steven._

_He leaned in and whispered in Barb's ear. The older woman nodded and grinned._

_"Oh yeah," she said, "That's_ definitely _going in there..."_

* * *

Greg fidgeted at his collar as he took his seat. He had suited up as Andy had insisted - he wore a tan suit with a waistcoat, although he had managed to convince his cousin to let him drop the tie. Steven sat down next to him - he wore a pink suit and tie, and was bouncing in his seat in excitement.

"Looks like Barb did pretty well with that suit of yours," nodded Greg, "Where's Connie?"

"She's just getting changed," replied Steven, "Apparently Pearl came up with something and..."

He trailed off as Connie arrived next to them.

"What do you think?" she asked.

Connie wore a blue, military-style tunic with red cuffs and collar, crossed with a black belt. Under this, she wore white pants and tall boots. She carried one of Pearl's swords on her belt (Rose's sword must have been too big for the purpose).

Steven tried and failed not to blush.

"Oh no, what're you two up to?" Greg asked half-jokingly.

"Well, I'm glad you asked," replied Pearl, stepping into place behind her student. She wore a similar outfit, except her tunic was pink.

"Are you doing some kind of honour guard?" asked Steven.

"Please tell me you're not giving Connie a rifle or something," said Greg.

"Oh, nothing so _uncouth_ ," replied Pearl, "Just swords. Apparently there's a human tradition called a sabre arch, and I thought it might be a good idea to do one of those."

She glanced towards the arch.

"Do you think they'll be okay?" she asked, "This is all _very_ new..."

"They'll be fine," replied Steven, "I promise."

* * *

_"Lapis?"_

_Lapis glanced over to Peridot from her hammock._

_"Yeah?" she asked._

_"I...need to ask you something," Peridot said nervously._

_"No, I don't know where the remote is," said Lapis._

_Peridot swallowed._

_"Apparently at human weddings, there's supposed to be someone who stands next to the...'groom' when they get married," explained Peridot, "And I..."_

_"Groom?" quizzed Lapis, "Humans have such weird names for things."_

_"I know," nodded Peridot, "But that's not the point. The point is...um..."_

_She scratched the back of her arm._

_"Lapis," she asked, "Can you be that person? Can you be my...what did Steven call it?...best gem?"_

_There was a brief silence._

_"Sure," shrugged Lapis, "Can I go back to sleep now?"_

_"Thanks Lapis," said Peridot, smiling._

_She walked away, letting her barnmate go back to sleep._

* * *

Twelve o'clock.

Everyone had arrived by now. The Crystal Gems were there, which went without saying - Garnet, Pearl, Greg, Steven and Connie were all right up the front, and even Lion was sleeping peacefully next to the chairs. The Off-Colours had also been invited - Lars, Rhodonite, the Rutile Twins and Padparadscha sat in the second row with Sadie, while Fluorite had taken a seat a little farther back due to her size. Having helped set up the whole thing, Barb and Andy had also been invited to attend.

Perhaps the hardest of all to bring to the barn had been Amethyst's family - the Famethyst. Steven, Connie and Garnet had gone on their own little mission on the repaired drop ship to bring them, which had been quite the adventure, but they had managed it (and once again, ensured Holly Blue Agate wouldn't report their temporary absence by reminding her that security breaches at the Zoo were technically her responsibility). The Amethysts, Skinny and Carnelian didn't really know what was going on, but they were clearly happy to be there for their Earthling sister.

The last guests were Sour Cream and Onion - not close friends of the couple, admittedly, but they were the children of what Amethyst had called her 'best girl', and Steven was friends with them both, so there had been no objections to their presence.

At the front, Zircon was nervously waiting to begin - Lapis stood to her left, Vidalia to her right. The lawyer gem breathed in deeply - she could do this.

In a human wedding, the groom generally took their place up front before proceedings began, while the bridge was escorted down the aisle. In this case, they had decided that they were both of these things at once. As a result, they both came down the aisle at the same time, to a recording of the Bridal March that Steven had made earlier with his ukulele.

Greg and Steven exchanged a small grin.

Barb and Steven's idea seemed to have worked like a charm. The two gems were wearing the top half of a suit over a wedding gown - green for Peridot, purple and white for Amethyst. At Steven's suggestion, they wore a flower over their lapels in the colour of the other gem. Peridot wore a purple bowtie, while Amethyst had gone for a green necktie.

Before long, they reached the front, turning to face each other. Both looked incredibly nervous - Peridot was visibly shaking.

Zircon swallowed, took a deep breath, and began to speak.

"Fr...uh...friends and family, we are gathered here today," she said, "To witness the joining in matrimony between these two gems, Peridot Facet-2F5L Cut-5XG and Amethyst Facet-5 Cut-8XM..."

As Zircon went on, Pearl sniffled quietly. Garnet glanced over to her, noticing her start to tear up.

"It's going to be okay, Pearl," she whispered, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"I know," Pearl whispered back, smiling shakily, "I know."

"Before we go onto the vows," said Zircon, "If anybody has any reasons why these two should not be wed, speak now or forever hold your peace."

There was a brief silence.

"Nah, I'm good," said Carnelian, shrugging.

There were a few chuckles, and Amethyst grinned and winked at the small red gem.

"Um...alright," nodded Zircon.

She turned to Amethyst.

"Do you, Amethyst," she said, "Take this gem to be your lawfully wedded partner, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or worse, for richer, for poorer, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, 'til death do you part?"

Amethyst swallowed, and nodded.

"I do."

Zircon turned to Peridot.

"Do you, Peridot," she said, "Take this gem to be your lawfully wedded partner, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or worse, for richer, for poorer, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, 'til death do you part?"

Peridot glanced briefly to Lapis, who gave her a discreet smile. She looked back at Amethyst and smiled shyly.

"I do."

"You may now exchange rings."

The two gems produced their 'rings' from their jackets - they were in fact small donuts, like the one Peridot had used to propose, although these ones were iced simply in green and purple respectively. They exchanged them - purple to Peridot, green to Amethyst.

"I never knew swapping donuts could be so beautiful," croaked Steven, beginning to tear up.

"I now pronounce you gem and gem," said Zircon, "You may kiss."

Without hesitation, they did so.

The Famethyst erupted into a thunderous cheer as the rest of the audience began to applaud. Steven broke into tears, burying his face into Connie's shoulder as she smiled and patted him on his back - next to them, Garnet was doing to same for an emotional Pearl. Zircon smiled and mopped her brow.

After a while, Peridot and Amethyst split apart, turning to the audience. Amethyst laughed, grabbing Peridot and picking her up bridal style as she began to make her way down the aisle. As she walked, Pearl and Connie quickly ran to the end of the aisle and snapped to attention on opposite sides.

"Present arms!" Pearl shouted.

She and Connie drew their swords, raising them up as an arch over the end of the aisle. Amethyst smiled as they passed underneath, giving Pearl a thumbs up - Pearl smiled and nodded back.

* * *

And that was that.

With the wedding over, everyone headed for the barn, where the reception had been set up - Greg, Andy and Lars had set up a selection of food for anybody who wanted it, and Sour Cream quickly set himself up as a DJ. It was perhaps the strangest assortment of people ever to attend a wedding reception - but it was without a doubt one of the most entertaining ever held.

As night fell, Garnet, Rhodonite and Fluorite had wandered outside. The party in the barn showed no sign of slowing down, but it was peaceful under the stairs.

"You know," said Rhodonite, "I think I could've done with another permafusion around here. I mean, not that you guys aren't great, but..."

"As long as Amethyst and Peridot love each other as much as we do," Fluorite said sagely, "It doesn't matter whether they can fuse or not."

"Oh, I-I'm not saying _that_ ," replied Rhodonite, "I-I-I was just saying..."

She shrugged.

"I just like talking to other gems who know what it's like to be me, I guess," she said.

"You guys okay out here?"

The fusions glanced to Stevonnie, who had come out of the barn to see what they were doing.

"We're fine, Stevonnie," nodded Garnet, "Just having a conversation."

Stevonnie nodded.

"Well, let me know if you need anything," they said, heading back to the barn.

Rhodonite watched them go, furrowing her brow.

"Do you think they might..."

Garnet smiled and shrugged.

"Maybe," she replied, "But that's for another day."

She lay down on her back, gazing up at the stars.

"Here's to love," she said, grinning.

"May Homeworld understand it one day," sighed Rhodonite.

"Like Peridot and Amethyst," nodded Fluorite.

* * *

It was midnight in Beach City, and the reception had finally ended. Amethyst and Peridot sat by the cliff next to the lighthouse, looking up at the moon.

"So," asked Peridot, "Do you reckon this is forever?"

Amethyst chuckled, putting an arm over Peridot's shoulder.

"Nah man," she said, "It's, like, forever _plus one_."

"It's logically impossible for there to be a period longer than forever, Ames," replied Peridot.

Amethyst grinned.

"I love you, Peri."

"I love you too," replied Peridot, smiling back.

They were silent for a while, listening to the sound of the waves below.

"So," asked Amethyst, "Where to from here?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I kind of just want Garnet, Rhodonite and Fluorite to form some kind of fusion club. Probably add Topaz to that when she can get herself away from Aquamarine.


	7. #7: Honeymoon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not a long one today, but I think it's a nice way to finish up.

**#7: Honeymoon**

"Are you entirely sure about this, Steven?" asked Peridot, "I mean, I thought we just had to lather ourselves with honey and go to the moon."

"I would've been down with that," chuckled Amethyst.

They were at the railway station with Steven and Connie, waiting to board a train to Empire City. The newlywed gems hadn't packed much - Amethyst had borrowed Steven's cheeseburger backpack, but that was it as far as baggage was concerned.

"Nah, this is normal," replied Steven, "A honeymoon's just a vacation that humans take after they get married."

"Then why's it called a 'honeymoon?'" asked Peridot.

Steven and Connie glanced at each other.

"I...don't really know," shrugged Connie.

"Hey, relax Peri," said Amethyst, putting her arm around Peridot's shoulder, "We've got a week in Hawaii ahead of us. It's gonna be fun!"

She turned to Steven.

"Hey, thank Greg for me, will ya?" she asked.

"Aw, dad says it was no problem," shrugged Steven.

"I know, but thank him anyway," replied Amethyst.

At that moment, the station's PA system activated.

" _Attention passengers, the 2.30 to Empire City Grand Central is now boarding on platform two._ "

"Well, looks like that's us," nodded Amethyst.

Peridot turned to the train idling next to the platform.

"Hmm," she mused, " _Primitive_...but is has a sort of rustic character."

"Peridot, that train hasn't even been service for a full year," said Connie.

"Yes, very rustic," nodded Peridot.

She turned back to her friends.

"Steven," she said, "I just want to say, if it hadn't been for you and everything you taught me about the Earth, I..."

She blushed.

"Thank you," she finished, "For everything."

"Don't you mean 'wow, thanks?'" asked Steven, winking.

Peridot smiled back.

"Wow," she nodded, "Thanks."

"Good luck, guys," said Connie.

Amethyst and Peridot turned to the train, looking towards the open doors.

"So, you ready?" asked Amethyst.

"No," replied Peridot, "Are you?"

"Nah," chuckled Amethyst, taking Peridot's hand.

They stepped onto the train and turned around, waving back at Steven and Connie.

"See you guys in a week!" called Amethyst.

"Remind Lapis to feed Pumpkin, I think she forgets sometimes!" shouted Peridot, "Goodbye!"

"Have fun!" replied Steven.

"Try not to burn down the Kingdom of Hawaii!" added Connie.

With that, the doors closed and there was the shrill sound of a whistle.

Steven and Connie watched as the train rolled gently out of the station, ambling past the signals at the end of the platform and into a tunnel. After it disappeared, Steven turned to his friend.

"Well, we should probably grab Lion before he wanders off again," he shrugged.

"Yeah," nodded Connie as they began to walk to the exit, "So, could you have imagined Amethyst and Peridot tying the knot a year ago?"

"It's been a pretty long year," nodded Steven, "Hopefully the next one might be a little quieter."

"You really think it will be?"

" _Nah_."

The two laughed as they walked into the station parking lot. Lion was sleeping next to the station building - he stirred as Steven and Connie approached.

"You think we'll ever see another gem wedding?" asked Steven, climbing onto Lion's back.

Connie smiled - she was thankful that Steven's back was to her, as she had started to blush a little bit.

"Yeah," she nodded, "I reckon we will, some day."

With a somewhat sleepy roar, Lion began on his trip back to the beach house.

**The End**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's it for this Amedot Bomb. I had a lot of fun with this one, I'm really glad I took part in it.
> 
> I'm probably not going to be able to take part in the next bomb, as I'll be in Great Britain when it starts. That said, I'm hoping to at least get some writing up in the near future - I've got a few ideas in my head.
> 
> Thank you all very much for the comments and the kudos - you guys make this possible. Have a good day!

**Author's Note:**

> Bet you weren't expecting _surprise Lars/Sadie angst!_
> 
> Hope you enjoyed that - I'll see you tomorrow!


End file.
